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Tuesday, July 24, 2007

I know most of you who read my blog don't care at all about the Tour de France, but as I mentioned a few posts ago, I love it - it's how I spend my July. Although I'm still cheering for Levi Leipheimer (and his incredible mountain-climbing teammate Alberto Contador!) , the rider I've really been pulling for, and admiring the strength and courage of, is Alexandre Vinokourov. I've been a Vino fan for several years now, and this year when he went from being the #1 favorite to win the Tour to being an underdog fighting back from a bad crash several stages ago which left him with ~50 stitches between his two knees, I kept holding out hope that he'd do something special and come back from behind and win it all! I couldn't imagine the strength it took to continue on in the Tour with messed up knees - they are sort of important in cycling. I loved it when he lead his team Astana like a locomotive last week on a flat stage, blowing apart the peloton and leaving Moreau in the dust. Then on Saturday he was SO amazing in the time trial, completely dominating. Sunday's first stage in the Pyrenees was awful, and he fell completely out of contention (which he was barely in anyway) and I was so sad, but then yesterday he had another AMAZING ride, winning the stage, and I was so impressed with the heart he showed to go out fighting and was sort of proud of him. But here's a conversation I had with my DH at the end of yesterday's stage:

Me: "How could he be SO amazing today after being SO BAD yesterday!?"DH: "Well, it's very similar to something that happened last year..." (meaning Landis' incredible comeback, who was later accused of doping)Me: "NO WAY! If Vino is doping, that's it, I'm done with the Tour de France, I'd be so incredibly disappointed."

No joke, this was our conversation. And what do I find out today? Absolutely unbelievable. Vino has tested positive for doping, has been suspended, and his team (which was having an AMAZING Tour) has withdrawn from the race. I couldn't be more disappointed. And I said I'd no longer watch. Now what to do? Is it possible that anyone doesn't cheat in this sport?

I feel bad for the atheletes. I mean, look at the things that they are expected to complete. These grueling stages, can a human body keep forcing itself through these things without help? And how much encouragement did he get from his crew to do so. The pressure to preform and preform well has got to be an incredible weight to bear, especially in such a competitive sport. I am sure mentally he is torched, over all of it.

What a disappointment! I find myself a little skeptical these days about any of the super athletes. I know there are plenty who are honest about it, but the others are dampening the joy and the awe of spectators like me.

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